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Ed Carlstrom, Hazelwood City Manager, Retires After 34 Years

After running the day-to-day operations of the city of Hazelwood for 34 years, City Manager Edwin G. Carlstrom has announced his retirement and will be stepping down from his position on Friday, July 26. Carlstrom has worked with several city councils, mayors, and department heads over the past three decades. He currently has the distinction of being the longest tenured city manager in the state of Missouri.

The Hazelwood City Council honored him recently for his 34 years of dedicated service to the community by presenting him with a special proclamation declaring Friday, July 26, as “Edwin G. Carlstrom Day” in the city. Carlstrom was also given the privilege of starting the City’s Fourth of July fireworks display this year.

During Carlstrom’s tenure, the City of Hazelwood has tripled in size from five-square miles to 16 square-miles, and the population has doubled to more than 25,703. In addition, Hazelwood’s assessed valuation has grown from $60 million to $548 million, ranking the community as the 12th largest in comparison to the other 92 municipalities in St. Louis County.

Carlstrom started with Hazelwood in 1979. As City Manager, Carlstrom has been an effective leader with substantial expertise in the areas of general administration, economic development, intergovernmental relations, land-use planning, budgeting and infrastructure planning and improvements.

“Over the many years I’ve known Ed Carlstrom, while serving on the city council and as the Mayor of Hazelwood, he has demonstrated his skills as a consummate government official with a strong commitment to public service,” Hazelwood Mayor Matthew Robinson said. “The city and our residents have always ranked as top priorities in his efforts to make our community a better place to live, work, and play.”

In May 1974, Carlstrom received his Master’s degree in Public Administration at the University of Missouri – Kansas City in the Urban Administration Program. Prior to accepting his Hazelwood position, he served as the executive director of the Southwest Nebraska Council of Governments, which represented 24 local units in a six-county area, and later became the city manager of Marceline, Mo.

Looking back over his 40-year career, Carlstrom says the most difficult time as a city manager and for Hazelwood itself was when the Ford plant closed in 2008.

“Thousands of people lost their jobs, many of whom lived in the Hazelwood area. I just felt it was my responsibility, as a local government official, to help provide greater employment opportunities for those in North County and other parts of the St. Louis area,” Carlstrom said. “The City Council, mayor and myself also faced some difficult decisions on how to replace the tax revenue stream we lost from Ford in order to keep our city financially solvent.”

Carlstrom’s retirement plans include spending more time with his grandchildren and starting to play music again. He also likes to golf, hunt, and fish.

Some of Carlstrom’s noteworthy accomplishments include the following:

Proposed a multi-year Capital Improvement Plan, which included building a new City Hall/Police Station Complex, a new Civic Center East, Fire Station, and Maintenance Facility in order to accommodate the City’s growth in population.

Added a $5.7 million, state-of-the-art water park facility, known as White Birch Bay Aquatic Center, next to the Hazelwood Community Center in White Birch Park

Used critical economic development tools to bring key investment and growth to Hazelwood. Created a thriving business-friendly environment that has sustained more than 1,000 businesses, including 12 Fortune 500 companies, six Fortune 1,000 companies and 10 corporate headquarters.

Facilitated Enterprise Zone Designation by partnering with six other local governments, which was approved by Missouri legislators in September 2003.